United Armada
The United Armada, or UA for short, is the Human Domain's answer to the need for an organized fleet of warships to project power across the stars. As a sub-organization of the Global Alliance for Space Administration, it is considered the most important sector, due to the increasing need for patrolling action groups throughout the domain. Without the armada, trade would stagnate, and thus planets would starve and profit margins would lower. The necessity of the armada is shown in its massive budget given to it by the funding nations of Earth. Warships have extensive costs - a single modern militarized starship would be the project an entire nation would need to rally behind. A fleet of them is barely manageable for a single planet or group of planets. Nonetheless, the United Armada counts in the thousands of ships, manufactured and maintained by an entire empire of worlds. At its height under the mobilization policies of Consul Prima Weyland in the early 2400s, the United Armada counted more than 7,000 ships and has yet to reach that number again since. Strategic Organizational Structure The United Armada's ships are organized into Flotillas, Squadrons, Battlefleets, Strike Forces, and Task Forces. Individual warships may also act as Action Groups. Flotilla A flotilla consists of four to five starships, usually corvettes, sloops, or frigates, with the odd heavy frigate as a leader for the flotilla. Rarely, a flotilla can also be a single capital starship with a group of smaller escorts in tow. A flotilla is commanded by a Rear Admiral. Squadron A squadron is the lowest on the hierarchy that is considered capable of undertaking operations independently. A squadron is made up of two or more flotillas. A squadron with two flotillas is referred to as 'binary'. One with three is a 'triangle' and one with four is a 'square'. The ships in a squadron will always include some capital ships, usually battlecruisers. A squadron is headed by an Inferior Admiral. Battlefleet A battlefleet is a group of two or more squadrons, going by the same nomenclature as a squadron. (Ex: a binary battlefleet) Battlefleets are given designated regions of space to patrol and protect, typically populated, that have trade routes and worlds that need protection and cannot, for whatever reason, be protected by Corporate fleets alone. A battlefleet is headed by an Admiral. Strike Force A strike force consists of several battlefleets arranged in a concerted effort to 'strike' at something or to attend to a particular mission or operation. Essentially, a strike force is a sub-group of a task force. Where a task force handles the greater strategic oversight of a goal, a strike force is its tactical arm. A strike force is headed by a Superior Admiral. Task Force Task forces can consist of dozens or hundreds of ships, depending on the scale of the war. The task force operates on a regional level that can include several individual star systems. Task forces send out smaller strike forces or battlefleets to tend to smaller regions, coordinating the entire war effort. Task forces include powerful warships of great caliber. A task force is headed by an Admiral of the Fleet. Action Group Sometimes, a single powerful starship is preferable to an entire fleet. These occasions present themselves when stealth is a priority, when precision is desirable, or when a commander wants to be conservative with limited resources and assets. Although an 'action group' may sound as though it refers to a group of several warships, it really is the official designation for individual warships given a certain mission. An action group is nearly always a capital ship of Star Dreadnought caliber or higher. Sometimes, action groups are commanded by the captain of that individual ship, or that captain can be accompanied by a superior. Armada Personnel In addition to the starships themselves, the Armada incorporates a hierarchy of personnel. Representation in Politics The United Armada is represented in government through the voice of its leader, the Grand Admiral. The Grand Admiral of the United Armada and the Consul Prima of the FFEL often cooperate and are aligned in matters, due to their military affiliations. Espatiers The United Armada also maintains the Espatier battalions, who are specialists intended to fight in boarding operations, that is, aboard starships. They also serve to police colonial vessels and protect the Armada's ground and orbital installations. They are commonly equipped with the specialist equipment of an espatier: a Triton and either a pistol, sub-machine gun, or shotgun. Ranks and Senior Officers Compared to the planetary forces the United Armada's senior command staff are highly trained specialists. To serve on a starship is seen as a career path for the best and brightest, and this leads to a professional organization. Captains From the old naval designation, the captain is the ultimate authority on his or her starship. Admirals may issue orders to a starship or group of starships but the actual details of executing these orders are left to captains to work out. Cartographers and Pilots Just short of the captain is the cartographer and/or pilot. Some captains may receive rudimentary training in stellar cartography, but nonetheless, specialists are assigned on the flotilla and squadron level. As long as there is one cartographer, even for an entire task force, the United Armada remains an operational and effective fighting force, however most of the time there are several. On starships other than the cartographers, pilots are instead used, typically cartographers-in-training who cannot do the actual cartography but can still read the directives and operate the navigation console. Gunnery Chief Modern weaponry is sophisticated and someone needs the know-how to conduct maintenance and oversight of a starship's offensive armament, as well as give tactical advice for the captain to consider in combat situations. The gunnery chief is typically drawn from the ranks of technicians and is something of an engineer. Lead Technician A military starship has a high ratio of technicians serving aboard, and this complement is crucial to the starship's combat effectiveness, as their expertise is best used for damage control. The job of organizing technician 'divisions' aboard a starship, both in combat and in day-to-day maintenance of critical systems, falls to the lead technician. Quartermaster The quartermaster is in charge of the cargo bay. If there is an imminent shortage of a particular fuel, in ammunition, energy, spare parts, etc. it is up to the quartermaster to report these issues and if possible rectify them. In addition, he or she manages communications, both in terms of radio communication to nearby friendly warships and distant headquarters and allies through the use of couriers. The quartermaster encodes as well as decodes these messages and if necessary finds an adequate translation. Conductor Certain logistical starships have one or more nanoforges onboard, used to fabricate anything that a task force may need to carry out its mission, cutting dependency on United Armada resupply depots. The conductor is charged with keeping the forge in working order and top efficiency as well as direct supervision of the nanites during the fabrication process to ensure quality. Starships Main Article: Starships of the United Armada The Armada is composed of a vast array of different types of starships and atmospheric craft, as well as landing crafts and pods. Star Dreadnought By the United Armada's definition, a dreadnought is specifically a warship with "all big-guns", that is, it is armed solely with weapons of very sizable caliber: from high-energy lasers and up to heavy coil-cannons, as well as a battery of missile launchers. They are colossal in size, ranging up to 20km in length. They often serve as flagships and leaders of battlefleets and even task forces, in conjunction with groups of other dreadnoughts. Their armoured belt consists of the thickest layers of the best materials available, and they are often equipped with a Blink Displacer. They are, however, extremely expensive. Only about a hundred were active at the Armada's height, and more than half of these were obsolete, Category C models. The sheer expense required to produce these warships makes them a valuable asset, one that makes empires reluctant to use them too liberally. This means they are usually only deployed in large fleet operations of major strategic importance. They are often named after places, mythology, or influential Armada commanders. Star Battlecruiser The Star Battlecruiser is the most common of the heaviest combat ships in the Armada. At the Armada's height there were just about half a thousand modern Battlecruisers in commission. Many of the Armada's greatest victories were achieved by Battlecruisers. In contrast to the Dreadnoughts, Battlecruisers have some "big guns" but are mostly armed with a plethora of medium guns. Hundreds of them, giving the Battlecruisers the heaviest firepower (in terms of sheer volume) of any ship. This means they can effectively force ships to "bleed to death" relatively quickly. Battlecruisers are however only about half the size of a dreadnought, the biggest being 15km. They too often serve as flagships and force leaders. They often receive blink displacers, and their armoured belts are respectable. While very expensive to construct (like any starship really) the Battlecruisers evolve fast enough that they are often nearly out of date by the time they are constructed, meaning they are a common sight in space battles throughout the galaxy. They are often named to honor important men in the history of humankind. Heavy Star Frigate Heavy frigates are arguably the most important combat ships. They are certainly the most cost-effective, perhaps three or four could be built for the cost of a battlecruiser and may be more useful. Often named to honor important women in the history of humankind. Star Galleon Often named for places or referring to events. Star Frigate Often use charged adjectives like fearless and admirable. Star Corvette Often use names of machines and technological implements. Star Sloop Often use names of hand weapons and tools. *Arbalest-class Star Sloop Star Cutter May receive class names, but not individual ship names (being classified with numbers and letters, a callsign.) Category:Astrofleets